Committed to protecting wild life: CM

Shimla: Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said that state government was committed to protect the rich bio-resources, which were valuable treasures of the state. “The government would never compromise with the development activities which posed threat to the environment in the state,” he said. He was presiding over a function organised here on Sunday at Indira Gandhi Medical College Auditorium by the State Council for Science, Technology and Environment on the occasion of the World Environment Day based on the theme ‘Go Wild For Life: Zero Tolerance For The Illegal Wildlife Trade’.

The Chief Minister said this year’s theme for the World Environment Day encourages us to celebrate all those species which were under threat and we should take action to safeguard them for future generations. He said by celebrating World Environment Day, we remind ourselves and others about the significance of the environment. He added the state government had established Two National Parks, 30 Wildlife Sanctuaries and 3 Conservation Reserves for conservation of wildlife in the State Singh underlined the need for zero tolerance for illegal wildlife trade for preserving the biodiversity for future generations. He stressed upon the need to understand the damage this illicit business was doing to environment, economies and communities, adding that we must also change our habits and preferences so that demand for wildlife products falls.

The Chief Minister said that the booming illegal trade in wildlife products was eroding earth’s precious bio-diversity, robbing us of our natural heritage and pushing many species towards extinction. He said although efforts to protect them had been successful to an extent yet many species remain at risk despite international campaigns to influence policy and considerable investments in conservation and law enforcement. Singh said that the resources available with us needed to be utilized optimally so as to protect, preserve and conserve for the prosperity of the future generation.

He exhorted the people to extend services for the betterment of environment and take pledge for conservation of wild bio-resources on “Live and Let Live” philosophy. The Chief Minister also distributed prizes to the winners of various competitions organised in the town on the occasion. A rally of around 700 students from about 40 schools was organized by the Council in the town on this occasion. Forest Minister, Thakur Singh Bharmauri, Mayor, M C Shimla, Sanjay Chauhan, Vice Chairman, State Forest Development Corporation, Kewal Singh Pathania, Principal Secretary Forest and Enviornment, R D Dhiman, Member Secretary, Ajay Kumar Lal, Joint Secretary, Kunal Stayarathi and children from various schools of the town were present on the occasion.